The Xbox Club

A couple of months ago I did something I wanted to do for a long time but did not have the excess income until now, I picked up an Xbox 360. Microsoft dropped the price on the 360 the same weekend I picked the console. I went with the Xbox 360 Pro 60GB version with wireless controller for $300 and copy of Halo 3 (for free).
When I first picked up the console I just expected a typical gaming experience: plug it in, turn it on and play a game. What I didn’t expect was a very mature entertainment platform. Not only can you play games with the Xbox 360 you can also download movies, games, game demos and download movie rentals from your netflix account.
Microsoft has also built a very mature online gaming community in Xbox Live that allows you to easily play your favorite games with your friends. And with a recent update on the console interface they have made the system easier to navigate, tell what friends are up to and much easier on the eyes.

I’ve quickly discovered that owning an Xbox 360 is more like joining a club than owning a piece of hardware. Part of the process of setting up a new Xbox 360 is creating your “gamer tag” and Avatar (think Nintendo Mii). This unique tag is used for multiple things including tracking your achievements in every Xbox game, connecting with friends online, tracking your stats in multiplayer games, and storing Microsoft points used to buy games and movies in the Xbox marketplace.

Given my overall experience with the Xbox 360 and the sheer amount of content available I would recommend this system to anyone over the Nintendo Wii or Sony PlayStation 3.

The R300

This past month after my good friend Chad and Kellie finished Millennium Triathlon I vowed that next year I would be doing it with them. Having been on a major health kick for the past month and a half I have lost 12 pounds and a belt size and a half. Today, I picked up the last tool I needed to complete a Tri, the Cannondale R300. After my father picked up a new Cannondale titanium-framed bike he was ready to part with his old aluminum bike that he used for more than nine years. He was very excited when I mentioned that I wanted to get back into biking. So tonight after the wife dropped me off at my folks home I made the 10 mile trek back home. The Cannondale R300 is not the R300 it was when it was purchased. My father replace almost every part on the bike except for the frame. All new upgraded Shimano gears, high-end Shimano shifters, low spoke Velocity wheels, carbon fiber fork, slim Specialized seat and Performance arrow bars. The final weight on the bike is just around 20lbs. not bad considering my last bike was a 50lbs. steel Schwinn!